“Gastineau is, um…antsy,” I told them. “The second attempt is gonna happen soon.”

“He should wait,” Ryon muttered.

“Maybe, but a second attempt done quickly after so many losses were sustained would be unexpected,” Callum replied. “Perhaps that will aid their cause.”

Abel got close and curled a hand around my neck.

I looked up to him.

“You good?” he asked softly.

Two days of him safe, The Three safe, my friends and family safe, before we started to take risks in order to save the world?

I knew it made me chicken, but I was good.

“Yeah, honey,” I replied.

He studied me like he was attempting to see if I was fibbing, must have got the correct answer (since I wasn’t), and slid his arm along my shoulders.

“Think I’m done,” he told Callum.

Callum lifted his chin.

Abel looked down at me. “Let’s go see what the witches had to say.”

It was an unnecessary errand. They’d do whatever we asked. They might hate vampires, but they dug us. Not to mention, they kinda liked the world as it was.

Even knowing this, and knowing Abel knew it too, I replied, “Yeah, let’s go see.”

With waves to the others (from me, Abel did a chin lift), we walked to the house.

And when we got to the witches, we found we were right.

* * * * *

Late that night, everyone was crowded in Gregor’s office. Most people were lounging in the copious seating available (he had a serious big office), including me. I was sitting in Abel’s lap.

Aurora was up and pacing.

Although she was the only one pacing, the air in the room was thick with tension.

Suddenly, Aurora stopped pacing, looked to her mother, and asked, “Did we do all we could do?”

“Yes, sweetheart,” Barb answered. “With the time given and the distance between us, we did all we could do.”

“Teona ain’t no newbie,” Ruby put in. “She’s got serious mojo. We gave it to them good.”

This loosened a bit of the tightness I felt in my chest and I looked to Teona. When she felt my eyes and looked to me, I smiled.

She winked.

I totally liked Abel’s sister-in-law.

“The operation began three hours ago,” Abel declared, eyes to Callum before they moved to Lucien. “Your gut, what does it mean that we haven’t heard anything?”

Callum looked to Lucien before both men scanned the room, their gaze stopping with meaning on any woman it touched.

There you had it. Protective vampires and wolves.

I rolled my eyes.

“Give it to us straight, darling,” Leah encouraged Lucien. “We can take it.”

“As you wish, my pet,” he replied, then looked to Abel. “It could mean they were successful, but just barely, and are currently securing a safe place in which to hide and see to Serena if, and this is a good possibility, she’s been harmed.”